Canon EOS R6 Mark II Body

The EOS R6 Mark II addresses a number of issues with the original model to become one of the most powerful all-round cameras in its peer group. Most notably it now shoots much faster than the Sony A7 IV, sports broader and more confident subject recognition in my tests, while its ability to film uncropped, oversampled 4k video up to 60p is a key advantage, and unlike the original R6, it never overheated in my tests. Plus you’re getting focus bracketing and stacking in-camera, Bulb timers, multiple exposures and slightly better stabilisation. Of all the upgrades, Auto subject detection is arguably the most useful in day-to-day use, figuring out if you’re pointing the camera at people, birds, animals or vehicles with a high success rate. Meanwhile the A7 IV fights back with higher resolution files and the ability to use a huge array of third party lenses including models from Sigma and Tamron. Then there’s the Lumix S5 II which sports a pixel-shift mode, a wealth of pro-level video-centric features, third-party lens support from Sigma, and a significant price saving too. Indeed body price and choice of native lenses are the main issues facing the R6 II. Ultimately the R6 II, A7 IV and S5 II are all excellent cameras most of us would be delighted to own. Choosing one involves weighing up body price, lens availability and drilling-down to specific features you may or may not need. If your budget will stretch and you’re happy to use Canon’s own lenses, I can Highly Recommend the R6 II as an all-rounder, and especially for anyone photographing sports or wildlife, but if you’re not wedded to the company, do compare it closely to rivals.

The Canon EOS R6 II stands out even from the very capable crowd of $2000-2500 full-frame cameras. It offers comparable image quality to its peers, competitive autofocus, very good video and the fastest burst shooting in its class. Like a swiss army knife, it's remarkably useful for a range of different things.